Market Close Report Today: Sensex, Nifty Slide As RBI’s Rupee Rescue Fails To Convince

Mumbai, October 12: Indian equity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty 50 ended lower on Monday, reversing early gains as selling in information technology, fast-moving consumer goods and financial stocks weighed on sentiment. Easing crude oil prices and measures announced by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to support the rupee offered some relief, but investors remained cautious amid persistent foreign fund outflows, elevated energy prices and concerns over corporate earnings.

The Sensex fell 547.65 points, or 0.76%, to close at 71,924.68, while the Nifty 50 declined 157.10 points, or 0.70%, to settle at 22,363.35. Market breadth was relatively balanced, with 2,187 stocks advancing, 2,066 declining and 235 remaining unchanged.

Sensex, Nifty Give Up Early Gains

The benchmarks failed to sustain their initial gains as investors continued to assess the impact of a weaker rupee, elevated crude oil prices and the RBI’s tighter monetary policy stance. The decline followed Friday’s rebound, which had brought relief after a prolonged losing streak in Indian equities.

Among Nifty 50 constituents, Tech Mahindra, ITC, Larsen & Toubro, Hindalco Industries and Hindustan Unilever were the biggest losers. On the other hand, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, Bajaj Auto, Bharat Electronics, BSE Ltd and Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles featured among the top gainers.

RBI Measures, Rupee Recovery In Focus

The RBI announced measures over the weekend to ease pressure on the rupee, which had been trading near record lows. These include directing oil companies to source their dollar requirements away from the spot market and tightening rules governing foreign-exchange hedging.

The measures are aimed at reducing immediate dollar demand and easing pressure on the domestic currency. The rupee recovered at the start of Monday’s session, but the improvement failed to translate into sustained buying in equities as investors remained concerned about foreign portfolio investor outflows and the broader macroeconomic outlook.

The RBI’s recent decision to raise the repo rate by 25 basis points to 5.5% and adopt a calibrated tightening stance has also kept investors focused on the outlook for borrowing costs, inflation and economic growth.

IT, FMCG, Financial Stocks Drag; Media Shares Rally

Sectoral performance was mixed. The Nifty Media index surged 4.6%, while Realty gained 1% and Auto advanced 0.9%. The Pharma index edged up 0.3%.

However, IT, Metal, Private Bank, PSU Bank and FMCG indices declined between 0.4% and 1%, weighing on the headline benchmarks. Losses in heavyweight stocks such as Tech Mahindra, ITC and Hindustan Unilever added to the pressure.

In the broader market, the Nifty Midcap index ended flat, while the Smallcap index rose 1.4%, indicating relative resilience among smaller companies despite weakness in large-cap stocks.

Crude Oil Above $100 Keeps Investors Cautious

Crude oil prices eased on Monday before risingto $106 per barrel. Lower oil prices offered some support to markets in the beginning.

For India, which relies heavily on imported crude, persistently high oil prices can widen the import bill, put pressure on the rupee and complicate the inflation outlook. Higher energy costs can also squeeze corporate margins and household purchasing power.

Investors will track further movements in crude oil, foreign fund flows and September-quarter earnings for cues on the market’s direction. The sustainability of the recent recovery will depend on whether currency pressures ease, oil prices retreat further and corporate earnings provide support to valuations.

Source:

• NSE
• BSE